DOD Needs Employers to Weigh In on Guard/Reserve Impact

March 30, 2011

By Henry Kenyon

Through the Department of Defense National Survey of Employers, the department hopes to better understand the benefits and challenges of employing members of the National Guard and Reserve. Now that the survey has reached its halfway point, the defense department would like all employers who received the survey to respond, as their feedback is needed to develop future Guard and Reserve policies.

According to the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a Department of Defense agency, who is administering the survey, Guard and Reserve members comprise nearly half of the military's total strength. The nation has relied heavily on Guard and Reserve service members in the almost 10 years since the September 11 attacks, frequently calling them away from their civilian jobs for military operations and humanitarian efforts around the world, including the 2004 tsunami in southern Asia, 2010 earthquake in Haiti and ongoing relief efforts in Japan. Their service and the support of employers are critically important. "If we are going to sustain their participation, we need to sustain the support of the employers," said Dennis McCarthy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs. "Finding out what we need to do to get that support is of vital national interest."

ESGR sent the survey to 80,000 randomly selected employers in the mail. The sample includes employers of every size and industry, from all across America. Survey participants should visit ESGR.mil and click on the survey link to provide their feedback on employing members of the Guard and Reserve. More information is available here.